Another successful microfossil sorting session! This one included a lot more unusual finds.

1 - Fish barb with spines (ouch!)
2 - Multituberculate molar - rare!
3 - Ungual phalanx

If you're interested in joining the illustrious group of volunteers that finds these fossils, our next event is Sunday, March 2, from 1 - 3:30pm at Mount Royal University, Calgary, AB. Everyone is welcome!

https://albertapaleo.org/events

Thanks to everyone who came out to help us sort Eocene microfossils - it was our largest turnout yet!

Our next event will be Sunday, January 26 from 1 - 3:30pm at Mount Royal University, Calgary, AB, Rm. B140. Everyone is welcome to come help find fossils!

See albertapaleo.org/events for more details.

Beat the winter blues with microfossil sorting! Join members of the APS this Sunday, January 12 from 1 - 3:30pm in rm. B140 at Mount Royal University, Calgary, AB, to sort through fossil matrix from the Eocene of Sakatchewan. We'll be looking for mammal teeth, fish bones, and anything else we can find.

Anyone is welcome to attend, and we'll have people ready to get you started and show you how everything works.

Another year of microfossil sorting is at an end! Some highlights this session included a grastropod, many mammal teeth, a tiny crocodile tooth, and some amber!

Since this summer, volunteers for the APS have spent collectively 158 person-hours and sorted through a very auspicious 2024g of sediment!

Our next session will be January 12. For more details, see https://albertapaleo.org/events/. Everyone is welcome to attend!

Thanks to everyone who came out on Sunday to help sort fossils! We found lots of teeth, fish scales, some vertebrae, and a selection of odds and ends. Pictured are a rodent incisor and molar (probably) from the Eocene of Saskatchewan.

Our next fossil sorting session is Sunday, December 1, and everyone is welcome! See the events page https://albertapaleo.org/events/ for more details.

We have a new room for our microfossil sorting this coming Sunday, October 20! If you're interested in going fossil hunting while comfortably sitting down with others who are as passionate as you, please join us in Mount Royal University room B140 from 1 - 3:30pm to look for microfossils!

This event is open to everyone age 12 and up, so we hope to see you there!

For more details, see the APS events page at https://albertapaleo.org/events/.

Have you ever wanted to go fossil hunting while sitting down in a climate-controlled room?

Aid the research of Dr. Theodor and Dr. Dutchak of the University of Calgary by searching the soil from the Cypress Hills Formation of Saskatchewan to find tiny fossils. We will be using microscopes in room B114 at Mount Royal University.

This event is open to anyone aged 12 and older.

For more details, see https://albertapaleo.org/events/

Australian quaternarists and micropalaeontologists - applications for the Leanne Armand Travel Award are now open. Details on the #AQUA website: https://aqua.org.au/sample-page/the-leanne-armand-travel-award/

Beautiful #Foraminifera - millions of years old, silicified and mineral stained. Stunning. Mother Nature is the best artist #microscopy #microfossils

So I started with 3g of sediment and this is what I have left after an acid bath in HCl to get rid of carbonates, separating out the clays, baking the organics out at 500 degrees C and separating out the silica But it’s ok! Gonna have lots of microfossils to look at! #phytoliths #sponges #diatoms #microfossils #PalaeoenvironmentalReconstruction #Science

Breathtaking Discovery: Unearthing Microfossils That Redefine Life’s Evolution
Scientists have discovered ancient microfossils in Western Australia, offering new insights into the rise of complex life during the Great Oxidation Event. These findings, which show similarities to algae, could redefine our understanding of life’s evolution and the potential for complex life forms in the universe.
https://scitechdaily.com/breathtaking-discovery-unearthing-microfossils-that-redefine-lifes-evolution/ #Microfossils #Evolution #GreatOxidationEvent #australia #life

Be a #scientist they said. It will be fun and interesting! Here I am watching beakers of brown dirt settle… I do jest. While sometimes processing lots of brown sediments can get a bit boring, it’s well worth the effort to extract those bits of silica that can tell us a bit about our ancient past and environment :)) #sediments #microfossils

Pretty view from the eye of the microscope
Silurian - Pridoli
Lithuania (EU), Milaičiai borehole ~1km deep
Pyrite, broken shells and etc...
#geo #geology #fossil #fossils #micro #microfossil #microfossils #paleo #paleontology #silurian #Pridoli #shell #shells #broken #microscopy #microscope

Nicholas Shackleton, English geologist & paleoclimatologist, died #OTD 2006. He was a pioneer in the use of mass spectrometry to determine changes in climate as recorded in the oxygen isotope composition of calcareous #microfossils #histsci

https://paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2013/09/02/microfossils-and-the-ocean-history/

Happy birthday Esther Applin (middle)

—in 1921 Esther suggested that #microfossils could be used in stratigraphy, but was ridiculed: “Gentlemen, here is this chit of a girl... telling us that we can use #Foraminifera to determine the age of formation. You know that it can’t be done”

Oh yes it can! On top of being used to date crucial events in our planet's history, #Forams have revolutionized our understanding of past climates, & has created thousands of jobs globally! #WomenInSTEM